Page 5 - Talent Handbook 2018

Talent Management Journey

• Inception

Although the term would not be coined for centuries, the industrial era set the stage for Talent Management with
factories and workshops that needed qualified staff. Workforce managers sorted through pools of applicants to find
the most experienced workers for tasks such as cloth manufacturing, basket making, carpentry, wood milling, and
much, much more. Their processes were somewhat streamlined, but still generally scattered and far from the
organizational processes that comprise the term today. (Source: HBR)

• Enter the Awesome Terminology!
The word “Talent Management” was coined in a 1998 paper entitled “The War for Talent,” written by Elizabeth G.
Chambers, Mark Foulon, Helen Handfield-Jones, Steven M. Hankin and Edward G. Michaels III. The crux of the paper is
that top Talent is necessary for organizations that want to be adaptable, decisive and successful, but that companies
frequently find themselves unable to fill these key positions. The answer:- A Talent Management process that helps
you attract and retain employees through the creation of key value propositions and development of an attractive
workplace environment.(Source: HBR)
• Talent Management Today
Around twelve years ago (circa 2004) people in HR started talking about bringing together many of the standalone
practices within HR into a new function called "Talent Management." At that point in time the economy was growing
and pundits were talking about "The War for Talent." The challenges included aging baby boomers, a tight economy for
critical skills, and the need to build leaders around the world. This set of issues refocused HR on building talent
programs to recruit, develop, and better manage people. The world of ‘Talent Management’ today has shifted to
systems and solutions that focus on leadership, empowerment and performance by leveraging technology. Talent
Management is now defined through learning and capability management, competency management, planning, and
business alignment. These are the “uber processes” which play everywhere in the organization and contribute to the
business goals, vision, strategy and mission. Performance management, succession planning, career
progression, and leadership development make up the core of these processes.